The present invention relates generally to magazines for air guns. More particularly, the present invention relates to magazines for large caliber air guns.
In small caliber air guns, rotary magazines are used to provide multiple shots without reloading. Projectiles used in small caliber air guns can be driven to acceptable speeds (e.g., 500 plus feet per second) without the need to seal the projectile into the bore or chamber of the air gun. Rotary magazines are commonly used in these rifles to provide multiple shots without reloading, and they rely on metal to metal (or plastic) contact to create the chamber and bore of the rifle.
In large caliber air guns (e.g., .30 caliber and larger) rotary magazines become impractical because they would require a diameter that would interfere with handling and operating characteristics of the rifle. Holding 5 to 8 rounds in the rotary magazine would also result in a weight increase and weight change with repeated firing that is undesirable. Additionally, providing a perfectly aligned chamber and bore together with a sufficient seal from air orifice to chamber and chamber to barrel bore for a high-power air gun (e.g., in excess of 300 foot pounds of muzzle energy) is not practical with a rotary magazine. For these reasons, large caliber high-power air guns have been single shot bolt action (or break action).